Halifax woman’s ‘smart’ free-parking manouever draws backlash

Margot Melanson says her penny-pinching parking system saved her hundreds of dollars.

I've always advocated giving a break to any vehicle that helps reduce traffic congestion in our big cities, including discounted or free parking for minicars, motorcycles and scooters.

For instance, the city of Kelowna, B.C., has issued passes to several hundred hybrid cars that allows them to park for free.

But Halifax resident Margot Melanson has been pushing the envelope by squeezing her Smart car between two other cars already parked in metered spots, CBC News reports.

Melanson's favourite spot is on the doorstep of the Nova Scotia legislature. She manages to slide the roller skate-shaped Smart — about 2.5 metres long — between the nose and tail of two cars using the adjacent spots and Voila! Free parking.

"It's like I have the primo sweet spot," Melanson told CBC News. "I have parked here sometimes when there's just six inches on either end."

Melanson, who works in a store around the corner from the legislature, said the free parking isn't just a bonus but a necessity.

Melanson is now also on the parking police's radar. Authorities say she's parking illegally because she's too far from the meter.

"The front of the vehicle can't be farther than one metre from the rear of the parking meter," Michaelyn Thompson, a spokesperson for the Halifax Regional Municipality, told CBC News.

Melanson said the publicity has taught her a valuable lesson: If you find a good place to park downtown, keep it to yourself.

Many cities, including Halifax, allow free or discounted parking for motorcycles in designated spaces and in Vancouver, electric scooters park for free in designated motorbike spots. Smart cars don't get a break.